The use of word processors running on general purpose computers is so common place today as to be taken for granted. Children, as well as adults, use such word processing programs to create, format and print (in selected colors, fonts and size) every conceivable type of document. These systems are used to create all manner of designs and to print the creations on all manner of printable material in addition to paper. One example for the use of such processors that has become very popular is to use them for the creation of account statements or paper checks. This use is typically in conjunction with an accounting program. Another use is the creation of T-shirt designs and the subsequent printing of such T-shirts (or other material) under control of the user.
Often, the document that is created by the user in the processor (for example, a letter, an invitation, an invoice, or a check) is then mailed to some other location. This entails the placing of the document (or other material) in a mailing container (envelope), addressed, and supplied with sufficient postage.
Additionally, a return document is often required or solicited from the recipient of the initial mailing. This requires the sender to also supply sufficient postage for the return communication or requires the recipient/respondent to supply and affix postage.
Many of the programs in use today print the mailing address (as taken from the document) on labels which are printed in conjunction with the creation of the document. These labels then are peeled off the document and transferred to the outside of the mailing envelope to save the user time and to avoid placing the envelope in the printer or otherwise addressing the envelope.
However, using such system the user still must add postage to the mailing envelope manually or the user must run the mailing container (envelope) through a postal meter. At best, this is one additional step. At worst, in the case of a nonconforming mailing container such as a carton, several additional steps are required.
Moreover, where a return document is solicited, the sender must find a way to include sufficient return postage. This presents several problems as often the return mailing container is unknown to the sender, as it may be provided by the recipient/respondent, thus presenting no clear choice to the sender as to where to apply the proper return postage. Even where the return mailing container is known to the sender, application of the return postage to this container requires additional steps to be performed by the sender. For example, in the case of providing the return envelope or in the case of an R.S.V.P. post card, the sender must still add the postage manually or run the mailing container (envelope) through a postal meter. Often these dilemmas are resolved by the sender foregoing the return postage, relying on the recipient/respondent to provide this necessary element. However, reliance on a recipient/respondent to contribute the extra cost and effort associated with providing such return postage may cause the recipient/respondent to fail to respond.
Furthermore, the customer is limited in the graphic configuration of the postage applied to the letter to those configurations printed and sold by the Post Office. Currently, the customer does not have the ability to create a customized postage indicia that would correspond to the message on a particular document such as the aforementioned invitation and/or R.S.V.P. card.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a system and method that provides for the printing of an appropriate amount of authorized postage by the same general purpose processors that allow the customer to create documents.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a means for the customer to enter the appropriate rate determining information such as the address to which the customized greeting card is being sent, what class of mail is being used, etc. Likewise, it is an object of the present invention to provide a means for the customer to enter rate determining information for the return correspondence solicited. Thereafter, the processing system that formats and prints a document may concurrently calculate the appropriate postage for the greeting card and/or a return item and print the appropriate postage for that particular document at the same time the document is being printed.